Should I use a sanding sealer on hardwood floors? If yes, when should I use it; before or after staining?

Answer 1

A "sanding" sealer is a different product than just a 'sealer', or wood conditioner. I just make that statement up front, because of the conflicting answers you have received so far, hehehe....

When you sand wood....it leaves behind tiny fibers, raised on the surface. You can help eliminate this somewhat, by repeatedly sanding with a finer, and finer grain sandpaper....eventually moving to steel scrapers. What the sanding sealer does, is, it helps to 'lock' those loose fibers in place...then you can do what is called a 'finish' sand, with a very high grit sandpaper, much sooner, than if you had not applied the sanding sealer.

Sanding sealer WILL block stain. As a professional woodworker, I can tell you that I use sanding sealer, as the last step, prior to applying a top coat on the wood. Thus, I would get my floors sanded as smoothly as possible... apply the stain....then apply the sanding sealer... lightly buff the floor (00 steelwool for example) to remove those raised fibers (without actually cutting thru the layer of sealer)... and then finish up with my top coat process (I highly recommend polyurethane for durability)

Remember to always sand with the direction of the grain, and not across it, hehehe.

Now, there are also wood 'sealers', as I previously mentioned. The purpose of this type of product is to help protect the wood. Wood 'conditioners' are used to help prevent any of the wood from accepting 'too much' of a dark stain, evening out the overall color. A wood sealer should be used after ALL the wood finishing is completed. A wood conditioner, should be used prior to staining.

Have Fun

Answer 2

Hardwood Floor Sealer

Answer 3

i am in the process of staining a maple hardwood floor.. my project is to extend a floor into a new area and try to match the existing floor. well the problem is that todays lumber cannot match the quality of days gone by, i am putting down a grade number 1 which has virtually no knots, however the grain is pretty wild and has a lot of character in it. the two floors by no means match each other, the color is close but the woods are not. the old floor is pretty much straight grain the new floor is pretty wild. now i feel i should have put a pre stain down first to even out the character in the wood. i don't think it would hamper the tone or color and would keep the dark areas minimal. one doesn't assume that hardwoods need any kind of a pre stain but there are times when it should be applied, for me its too late. its always hind sight not to do this. however one should always try the whole procedure out first on a couple test pieces to get a feel as to the final result. i didn't, i used some test pieces and matched the color but didn't foresee the problem of the wood grain. i also have to put down 2 coats of stain because the maple is hard enough not to get the match in one coat. in normal cases i wouldn't put down a pre stain first but there are times it is required i think. i am going to put down a shellac sanding sealer thinned down with a pint of denatured alcohol per 1 gallon of sanding sealer. after that i will sand the floor with 220 grit sand paper and then put down 2 coats of water based floor finish sanding between coats. the reason i use shellac sanding sealer is that its compatible with any top coats of either water or oil based finishes. it also dries fast and can be recoated quickly if time calls for it. this is my opinion and experience with this. i have been doing remodeling for a lot of years and have used the shellac for sanding sealer under a variety of materials, on windows and floors too and haven't had any problems yet.

Answer 4

Use a Wood Conditioner first. This will help the wood absorb the stain more evenly. The question is, why would you want to stain the floor? Sanding alone will expose the grain to accept your finish coat. Caution should be exercised when changing the color of wood because what you do is permanant. Darker stains create an appearence of less space.
Anyway, sanding sealer will close your wood fibers and they will not accept a stain.
Hope this helps.

Answer 5

You should apply your stain before sealing your flooring. The sealant is designed to prevent other liquids, etc from penetrating, so applying sealant first and then stain would be counter productive. If you think you'll have a problem with the stain penetrating equally, then apply a pre-stain product that will allow the stain to cover evenly and not cause blotches. Ir the sealer is to be used as part of the sanding process, then it would go on before the stain, but that sounds a bit odd to me

Good luck

Answer 6

Before, as the stain has to also stain the sealer as well. Otherwise the floor will be full of streaks of unstained wood after sanding. Apply according to directions and then sand as directions for floor and finish indicate and then stain.

Answer 7

Been there. Lived that. Anytime liquid sits on your floor it will blacken the wood. Pour on enough hydrogen peroxide to cover the stain and let it sit for a few minutes. You can almost watch the black disappear. Then mop it up. Unfortunately, it bleaches the wood. You will have to re-stain it or if it is in an unconspicuous area, don't worry about it. Put a rug over it or something. To get rid of the pee smell you have to re-finish the floor. My hardwoods are wax finish so all I had to do was give it a coat of wax. If you have polyurethane you will have to strip off the old and apply a new coat.

Answer 8

sand your floor (if it needs it) first with nothing but sand paper (you can rent floor sanders that make it go quick), after it's to where you want it, then stain.....

sanding sealer just means it's a sealer that can be sanded like with fine steel wool so that you can remove minor bumps in the sealer before the next coat.

Answer 9

Put the sealer first and let it dry,this will raise the grain in the wood.
After you sand the sealer completely,put the stain and then another coat of sealer to protect the stain.
If you want a glossy finish,put a few coat of polyuretane,rubbing it with 00 steel wool between coats.

Answer 10

stain the floor first then use the sealer.I would use a varnish cut 50/50 with thinner as a sealer. that way you seal the wood and add more protection to your stain. then apply a couple of coats of the varnish of your choice.